Suppose your desire to stay fit, jog, or workout at the gym does not stretch as far as your budget to buy a smartwatch or fitness tracker to provide you with the data, encouragement and motivation to keep going. In that case, Xiaomi has got you with its Smart Band 9 Active. This slim (9.99mm) and lightweight (16.5g) fitness tracker is fully featured but costs just R629 (although currently on special at a variety of local retailers for significantly less).
It boasts a 1.47” TFT display for easier viewing, and this screen also feels smooth enough whilst navigating the proprietary OS despite only having a 60Hz refresh rate. It is protected by a reinforced glass cover and is attached to a easy to use rubber strap that allows for wrist circumphrances of between 135–215mm with the band and display also being 5ATM water resistant so workouts in the pool or jogging during a light Gauteng shower shouldn’t be a problem.
The Smart Band 9 Active connects to your smart mobile device using Bluetooth 5.3 BLE and connects to iOS powered devices or Android running tablets and smartphones (Compatibility: supports smartphones with Android 8.0/ iOS 12.0 and above). You use the Mi Fitness app to setup and manage the fitness tracker, also enabling you to swop out between the 100+ band faces for a different feel on the daily.
Speaking of exercising, the Smart Band 9 Active sports 50 fitness modes for tracking a myriad of workouts including outdoor walking, running, outdoor cycling, treadmill, hiking and jumping rope. Moreover, you also get heart rate monitoring, SpO₂ tracking, Sleep tracking, Women’s health management, and Stress measurement as part of your capabilities, which is impressive for less than R700.
Ultimately, this is a great fitness tracker for people on a strict budget, the elderly who need vitals like heart rate monitored by their children, and even kids when they progress from ones specifically designed to track toddlers and pre-teen adolescents.
